7 Reasons Why '99 Cricket World Cup Is Still Alive In My Memory!

Back in '99, I was in grade VIII and was on summer break when the only sports that whole of the country enjoys, was all set to take on the world stage. Every nook and cranny, tv channels (we did not have too many of them at that time), every radio channel, markets and almost everyone had cricket fever going on. Its almost two decades now, since that event but the memories of all that mega event are still fresh in my mind.

May it be that milk ad (Candia), which would be running on the fall of wickets or on a shot that would gain the batsmen four or six runs or may it be the fact that the event was hosted in England, which is considered as our second home town - light green shirts and finger biting matches, I remember it all.

All the Pakistan cricket aficionados will agree that after '92, we only had seen '99 as one of the best years for Pakistan cricket. Why not? Pakistan was on a roll. If you ask me what are my rock solid reasons to cherish and treasure it; I will give you following seven of them:

1. Killer Team:
Boys knew what they were at. May it be Rawalpindi Express terrorising the batsmen of opposition teams or Inzi showing superb technique at the pitch. We had a brilliant spinner like Saqlain Mushtaq and an amazingly motivating keeper like Moin Khan - 'Come on Saiqee' ringing in the background all the time was enough of motivation and would also mount immense pressure on the opposite team. Oh, how I wish we could see someone like him behind the wickets again.

2. Unpredictable In A Good Way:
Our first surprising win against Windies was the first step towards the series of good surprises. We had close victories, especially the match against Australia that was won by 10 runs and then beating New Zealand in Semi-Final to get its place in Final - it had all put everyone in sheer ecstasy.

3.Underdogs Turned Into Pack of Wolves:
No one expected Pakistan to outperform the big teams. Pakistan was not among favorites and was very much expected to get knocked out in Quarter Final just as it did in '96. Nevertheless, everyone including Abdul Razzak, Azher Mehmood and many more outshone and gave their best performances. Saqlain's hat trick is just unforgettable.

4. Unity:
Unity was palpable in the team. Newspapers were full of positive reviews regarding the team cohesiveness. It was a treat to see a team that was apolitical and was laser focused towards one goal - lifting the cup again and bringing it back to home.

5. Celebs Enthusiasm:
I have not seen so many musicians composing songs for an event as happened in '99. From Awaz to Hadiqa to Jawad Ahmed, everyone was coming up with one song or another. So much fun to get to listen to great music while watching plenty of brilliant cricket.

6. India Did Not Matter:
Losing against India our arch rival did not affect anyone - neither the team nor the general public. We just were looking at the bigger picture or maybe India not making it too far (came last in the Super Six stage) was in itself a satisfaction.

7. Pepsi Ads:
Pepsi brilliant commercials literally served as a cherry on the top. I have not come across as good of ads by Pepsi again.

Even though we faced a huge disappointment in the final against Australia and it was no less than a shock on how the whole team collapsed - not
even touching 150; nevertheless, all the disappointment fades away in comparison to the inordinate amount of joy we had the whole tournament.

'19 seems like not too far - just thinking if I will be writing about it the same way two decades after!

About the Author: Believes in herself!